After the Storm: SHEmovement's COO Weighs In On The Protest
Sean Bell, Oscar Grant, Michael Brown, Eric Garner; The list goes on and on. Going back further than Rodney King (When I was a kid) the atrocities of the police getting away with brutality has sparked outrage and protest. When I found out the news Yesterday, I screamed into my pillow and shed the same tears as I did for Michael Brown’s, Trevon Martin’s and Tamir Rice's families. Then like everyone else, I waited for the protest. Because that is what ‘we,Next Generation Activist do, protest. But after the protest and everyone does their own proverbial scream into the pillow, then what? Because it seems like everyone goes back to 'business as usual' until the next senseless death. How will our protest will be taken seriously if we can't stay on message after the storm? Just like the child who throws a tantrum, eventually everyone in the family tunes them out. The Protest is supposed to be the prelude to the change we seek. Not just a place to vent our frustration, or earn ‘revolutionary bragging rights'. There are people around the world protesting in solidarity to our problem of police brutality; now that we have the worlds attention what is our Plan of Action?
It's been said this fight is this generation’s ‘Civil Rights Movement’, and it very well could be if we go about it the right way. The Civil Rights Movement had LEADERS, willing to put their lives on the line and see the movement through. Laying down a list of demands, organizing voters and putting pressure on political leaders - in addition to protesting. The Civil Rights Movement produced individuals who RAN FOR OFFICE to change the system from within through policy. The Civil Rights movement produced ARTISTS that created a soundtrack for the cause. Last but not least, the Civil Right Movement produced individuals willing to take responsibility for their communities by ENTERING LAW ENFORCEMENT or creating community protection programs to ensure ‘outsiders’ were not policing our neighborhoods. Who are our generation’s leaders, political figures and artists? After the crooked cops are removed, who is going to replace them?
That last question especially requires some soul searching from the Black and Brown Communities. Due to our; ‘F**k The Police’ and ‘Snitches Get Stitches, or Buried in Ditches’ mentality, enlistment in the police force is at it’s all time low for POC (Want proof? Just look at the racial makeup of the protesters vs. police officers) and I can't remember the last time I've seen a neighborhood watch in the hood. As a result, we have individuals, in most cases, that have never interacted with a person of color on a personal level. Beginning their shifts with an ingrained fear and mindset of going to war, instead of 'To Protect and Serve'....
ARTISTS! The foundation the Hip Hop Culture is to be the voice of the community. NOW is the time to use your talent to speak for the community, and spur change. They say there is a season for everything; And the last decade and a half has been one Iced Out, Bottle poppin’, Ass shakin’, Dope sellin' & Gun totin' party. NOW is the season to take our cause seriously, or no one else will.
